LenT

Just to clarify any possible confusion you may have inadvertently introduced with this comment, I should emphasise that the quote you selected did not come from any media organisation, but was the main conclusion of the Yellow Card reporting system commenting on the efficacy of Covid vaccinations. To reiterate: I hope that resolves any confusion.

I'm impressed that you even manage to keep up. I suspect that the Covid data resource is growing on a daily basis, what with all the on-going research and the new vaccines being developed almost as fast as new variants are appearing. So it's understandable that it can get to be a bit bewildering. For example, as I have previously noted, you have in the past relied on the Yellow Card reporting system to cite vaccine-related Adverse Reactions. And yet you have ignored the main finding of the Report. Namely: Vaccines are the best way to protect people from COVID-19 and have already saved tens of thousands of lives. Everyone should continue to get their vaccination when invited to do so unless specifically advised otherwise. You are obviously free to choose what you believe, but it may be a mistake to believe only what you choose!

Not as I recall Philip. 😊 Seeing as how it was the Today programme, I suspect she may have been upset enough having to concede the direction of travel without commenting on the rate!

Coincidentally, just heard an interview on the Radio 4 Today prog. with a Bloomberg representative who was saying that gas prices have been coming down. The interviewer, if I heard her correctly, stated that they were now 220% of what they were before Russia’s invasion. Presumably this would require a revision of the ‘treasury document’?

I think that before descending into a paroxysm of faux rage, a note of caution might be appropriate. As far as I can determine, this particular nugget originated in an article published by Bloomberg on the 30th August. Since then the original and rather more circumspect statement has grown into the simplistic and much repeated claim above. The Bloomberg article does not claim the existence of a ‘treasury document’. In fact it turns out to be a figure that may be attained ‘according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing internal calculations.’ Which seems to me to be about as far from being a ‘Treasury Document’ as one could find. In fact, the Treasury says ‘It doesn’t recognise the figures’. Be that as it may, it’s an enlightening example of how an unsubstantiated statement by an unidentified source is believed by some to gain credibility by repetition. Of course, it may be correct. Events in the next two years may well prove it to be an accurate forecast. In which case no doubt there will be strenuous efforts to part these ‘energy companies’ from their ‘excess profits’. But in the event that this prediction proves to be merely alarmist and prejudiced, will those guilty of having spread it be equally strenuous in publishing their fulsome apologies? https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-08-30/uk-predicts-up-to-170-billion-excess-profits-for-energy-firms

Very impressive! That’s the kind of hard work not many people would put in these days - including myself! I have a battery powered automatic jobby and that’s quite arduous enough for me, thank you very much. 😊

If you have a Costco account, Peter, they are currently offering up to £100 off a set of CrossClimates+ . I don’t know if that includes your size, but in the past they did get me a set of discounted CrossClimates for my Accord despite them not being listed as one of the sizes on offer. And if approached they may even extend it to include the CC2s. So they seem pretty flexible.

I wonder if it was the same experience I had when attempts to remove the only metal dust cap resulted in sheering the stem clean off the TPMS valve! Mind you, it did demonstrate the wisdom of having a spare tyre - albeit a SpaceSaver - and not having to rely on an injectable gloop kit. 😡

Having said all that, I then read some of the reviews on Screwfix. It seems the longer one has attracted a few complaints about excessive creaking. So I’ve now reconsidered and instead may buy this Werner platform. https://www.screwfix.com/p/werner-aluminium-work-platform-500-x-1150mm/574jj#BVQAWidgetID But thanks for the excellent suggestion,Nigel.

What an excellent suggestion, Nigel. For years I’ve been using a two-step fold out job which gets me high enough but doesn’t allow any movement. I’ve never thought about a platform because I’ve never needed one around the house. But this will make car washes easier - and I’m sure I’ll find other uses for it once I have it. I see my local Screwfix has the longer one in stock, so I shall probably get one in time for the next car wash! 👍

I have a couple of these TireTek gauges. They’re supposed to conform to a standard that demands an accuracy of 2%. Considering that you could be +- 1psi just reading a dial type gauge - and that you don’t know how accurate the dealer’s gauge is - I think you can regard this result as being well within acceptable limits! Incidentally,I found them to be an excellent company to deal with. I had a problem with first one I bought and it was replaced without a quibble.

I think that’s the way to go, Marcus. Choosing a new set of tyres is the most important decision. If they come with an N2 fill - like they claim at Costco - then there’s very little in the way of downsides. ( Coincidentally, Costco Is currently offering up to £100 off a set of Michelins ). Having said that, I’ve had a couple of new sets from Costco and there have been occasions when at least one tyre has had to be refilled with ordinary compressed air and I can’t say that I noticed any difference. Mind you, I didn’t get any new, fancy coloured dust caps either. Makes you wonder? 🤔

Sorry, Linus, but I think I may have noticed another nit to pick! I think you are correct in stating that it’s the water content in the tyre that’s probably more significant. However, liquids convert to a gaseous phase at lower temperatures as the pressure above the liquid is reduced. Which is why it can be such a pain to boil an egg on Everest!

You’re something of a lone voice in this respect, Linus. In the tire pressure section of the Lexus manual, it makes a point of stating that it’s the ‘Recommended cold tire pressure’. In fact I’ve never seen any recommendation to the contrary. Now you could make an argument for there being a variation in ambient cold temperature from day to day - and even country to country. But at least setting a cold tyre base temperature gives a consistent start point, whereas trying to standardise the conditions to arrive at a warm tyre point would involve too many variables. In practice, of course, most people drive to a petrol station and top up their warm tyres there! Although I suggested it might be the main benefit of nitrogen, that’s only relative! Tyres are not impermeable to gas molecules, but more so to N2 than O2. But I think you’re right to say that the presence of water molecules will have a much greater effect anyway. As for the green dust caps, I think that I have indeed seen claims that they are supposed to indicate a nitrogen fill - but unless I had personally done it, or witnessed it being done, I certainly wouldn’t rely on it. It’s just as likely to be the whim of someone who fancies green dust caps!

Frankly Marcus, as your car was around 4 years old when you got it, unless you deflated the tyres and did a gas analysis of the contents, then Lexus-owned or not, there’s no way of knowing what they now contain! I suggest you just regard them as having nice green dust caps. If you think Nitrogen is worth the extra and can find a source, then I would start with a clean fill - ideally combining it with a new set of tyres. The main benefit, I suggest, is that with Nitrogen being a bigger molecule than Oxygen, it will leak out of the tyre slower than the oxygen component. Which would suggest that a Nitrogen-filled tyre would retain its set pressure for longer. Whether that would translate into a real-life motoring benefit is debatable.

These style of seats seem to be a feature of the F Sport, as embossed on the head restraints. Wherever they crop up in the online brochures and Lexus specs, they are described as ‘Flare Red leather seats’. And sometimes as a smooth leather. So unless another owner knows to the contrary, I suggest your sales guy speaks true! Just out of curiosity, did you get an old-fashioned printed brochure with the car? That would detail the options available with each level of spec.

An interesting point. There are times when ‘progress’ looks like a step backwards. My Ford 100E taught me traction control was about using the clutch and accelerator in appropriate amounts. Maybe there’s a case for learning to drive in a car that forces you to learn how to drive! 🤔

This brought back fond memories of my first car 60 years ago - a Ford 100E with a three-speed box. My first winter was marked by a heavy snowfall one morning which I spent romping up the local hills of north London, weaving past the many floundering cars of the more affluent ie everyone else! I’ve no idea what tyres it had, but the traction was remarkable. Although it may well have benefited from the sack of coal that for some unaccountable reason I had in the boot! No doubt a winter accessory that could be just as effective today. 🙂

I would have thought that location might be an influencing factor, too. I’ve always used the Lexus dealer from whom I bought the car. But then they’re reasonably accessible. Indeed, on occasions they’ve come and collected it. If a Lexus dealer wasn’t convenient, I’d look for a Toyota dealer. I would find trusting the car to an Independent much more problematic. I also bought the car with a Service Plan, which I’ve maintained ever since. Apart from other benefits, I rather think that it’s a display of mutual confidence and commitment that does improve customer/dealer relations. And that may be an intangible benefit, but it’s one worth having!

Just wondered if you were still procrastinating, Pete? Or had you arrived at a firm decision to do nothing at all for the moment? 😊 You refer to ‘nano ceramic’ coating. As far as I can gather, this is what’s more commonly known as ‘ceramic coating’! I can’t find any convincing evidence that this is anything more than a marketing description of the SiO2 molecule. The size of a molecule is surely determined by the size of its elements, literally, so I don’t see how you can get a nano version. But then I’m no physicist! But as I think has already been established here, there is a general approval of a well-applied ceramic finish on a well-prepared surface. Certainly I have no regrets and regard it as one of my more intelligent investments in the field of automotive pimping. In fact, elsewhere on this site, there’s been a conversation as to how well ceramic coatings have protected car finishes in a time of hosepipe bans.

Now that’s fighting talk, Linus! 😀 It was a 2.2 i-DTEK which I had for six years until it was written off on the M25. I chose Honda on the strength of my previous Prelude which I’d had for 10 years and 120k miles. Both cars had only ever had basic servicing - not even any minor problems that I can recall. And I would have had another Accord - except they were no longer sold in the UK. I got the Accord when motorists were being encouraged to buy diesel - and never felt there was any lack of performance. Equally, the excellent consumption figure was not a factor when I bought it. Fortunately it also wasn’t a consideration when I got the Lexus! That 2.5 V6 is a delight - but frugal it ain’t!

My apologies, Paul. I was confusing you with another poster on the same subject! But I thought the point you made was rather important. And the fact that the car was new and you could reasonably expect it to be delivered with the latest software, must have been very disappointing. I can only hope that the rest of the Lexus has even exceeded your expectations. 😊

Apparently, this Poster updated his SatNav three weeks ago and discovered an error that suggests it’s actually two years out-of-date! Switching to Google Maps he then found that that system was spot on. I make do with my Garmin system - complete with free quarterly updates a year - which clips securely and conveniently onto the ventilation slats in the central part of the dash. And of course it’s far easier to use than the Lexus effort.

I’m very much of a like mind, Linus. Fuel consumption has never been a consideration when weighed against driving pleasure. Except in one respect: I do like to set the dash displays to show the estimated mileage left in the tank! So I was quite surprised to discover that while my previous Honda Accord 2.2 diesel promised 660 miles on a tankful, the Lexus would only go as far as 330 miles. Even more surprising, the Lexus tank was one litre bigger.

I remember it well, Vladimir. Watching it race in the BTCC meetings was a hoot! Apparently the other drivers hated it. It wasn’t just that it was surprisingly quick around the circuit, it was that it was comparatively so much larger than its competitors that overtaking was not a straightforward business. I’ve tracked down this editorial that might bring back some memories! https://www.media.volvocars.com/global/en-gb/media/pressreleases/143336/twenty-years-since-volvo-made-its-debut-in-the-btcc-with-the-850-estate